A vehicle typically includes a climate control system which maintains a temperature within a passenger compartment of the vehicle at a comfortable level by providing heating, cooling, and ventilation. Comfort is maintained in the passenger compartment by an integrated mechanism referred to in the art as a heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) air-handling system. The air-handling system conditions air flowing therethrough and distributes the conditioned air throughout the passenger compartment.
The air-handling system commonly employs a housing having a network of conduits formed therein. The housing further includes a plurality of diverters associated with the network of conduits for selectively controlling the flow of the air to various vents within the passenger compartment of the vehicle, depending on an operating mode selected by a vehicle occupant. For example, the flow of air may be selectively provided to a first vent of the passenger compartment by rotatably opening and closing a first one of the diverters.
Although the diverters are disposed within the housing, a means for controlling the position of each of the diverters is disposed external to the housing. For example, a shaft of the diverter may extend through an opening formed in a wall of the housing to engage a drive assembly, wherein the drive assembly engages the shaft to control a rotational position of the diverter.
To ensure proper kinematics, gears of various sizes couple the shaft of the diverter to the drive assembly. Particularly, a lever must be fitted to the shaft of the diverter. Because the diverter is substantially disposed within the housing, while the shaft of the diverter extends through the opening in the wall of the housing, the lever of the shaft must be assembled to the shaft of the diverter after the shaft is inserted through the opening. Although functional, traditional means of assembling the lever to the shaft of the diverter are not without drawbacks. For example, an axial position of the lever with respect to the shaft and the drive must be secured to ensure proper operation of the air-handling system.
In one embodiment of the prior art, a means of securing the axial position of the lever includes a resilient snap barb formed on an inner portion of the lever. As the shaft of the diverter is received axially through the lever, the snap barb aligns with a detent of the shaft, and springs inward to engage the detent, thereby securing the axial position of the lever with respect to the shaft. However, because the snap barb is disposed within the lever, a position of the snap barb within the detent is difficult for traditional sensors to measure and requires human verification, thereby increasing labor costs and likelihood for human error.
In another common configuration, the axial alignment of the lever is secured by a mounting bracket of the drive, wherein a hub of the lever is secured within an opening formed in the mounting bracket by a pair of radially outwardly extending barbs. The barbs are formed on the hub of the lever, and spring radially outwardly once passed through the opening, thereby engaging the mounting bracket to secure an axial position of the lever with respect to the mounting bracket. However, this configuration is functionally deficient, as rotational friction between the barbs and the mounting bracket increases a torque required to rotate the diverter. In addition to functional deficiencies, this configuration also requires that the lever be assembled to the mounting bracket prior to installing the mounting bracket to the housing. This not only dictates an order of assembly order for the air-handling system, but increases supply chain costs, as the package density of the mounting bracket assembly is decreased by the preassembled lever.
Alternatively, the means of securing axial position may include independent fasteners, such as snap rings or threaded fasteners. However, although assembly and verification of these independent fasteners can be automated, they undesirably increase manufacturing costs by requiring additional assembly steps and increasing supply chain complexity.
Accordingly, there exists a need in the art for an improved means of assembling rotating components in an air-handling system, which allows automated assembly verification, does not increase operating torque, and does not dictate an order of assembly or the air-handling system.